How to Draw Manga: Volume 1 — Compiling Characters

How to Draw Manga is an English-language digital PDF textbook about compiling and drawing manga characters. It is designed for beginners and non-professional artists, with instant download access after purchase.

Written and drawn by Tatsuhiro Ozaki, this volume explains practical approaches to faces, bodies, clothing, expressions, character types, and story elements. The manga characters shown in the book are fictional.

The 118-page digital edition also includes drawing materials, technical exercises, and a glossary of manga terms.

Book Overview

This instructional art book focuses on developing manga characters with greater structure, movement, and personality. Chapter 1 covers faces, angles, facial proportions, expressions, age, gender, hair, and related drawing techniques.

Chapter 2 examines body basics, skeletal structure, movement, proportions, hands, feet, body angles, clothing folds, sketching, and deformed bodies. Chapter 3 introduces theme, story, character creation, emotions, costumes, accessories, and backgrounds as elements of manga.

The book is intended for people beginning to draw cartoons or comics, readers seeking more serious study, and artists who want to improve their technical skills.

What You’ll Discover Inside

• How to draw faces from different angles and apply basic head partitioning.
• Ways to represent facial expressions, hair, braids, and differences between adults and children.
• Methods for constructing bodies with skeletal structure, proportions, movement, and complex angles.
• Approaches to drawing hands, feet, clothing folds, leather jackets, and deformed bodies.
• The use of drawing instruments and materials, including pencils, pens, brushes, rulers, tones, and light boxes.
• The three major elements of manga: theme, story, and character.
• Character types, costumes, accessories, emotion, backgrounds, and a glossary of manga technical terms.

Why This Book Matters

This volume presents manga drawing as a structured study of character construction and visual storytelling. Its scope connects technical figure drawing with the development of recognizable characters.

By addressing beginners through adults and more serious non-professional artists, the book offers a practical foundation for readers studying manga technique.

Book Details

Device Compatibility

This is a digital download, and no physical copy will be shipped. Access is available after purchase.

The PDF works with appropriate Kindle apps, tablets, desktop computers, mobile devices, and compatible reading apps. Device features may vary by application.

FAQ

When can I access the book?
Access is available after purchase through the digital download.

Will I receive a physical copy?
No. This product is a digital PDF download with no physical shipping.

What devices can open the file?
The PDF can be read with compatible Kindle apps, tablets, desktop or mobile devices, and reading apps.

Download this digital edition to study the character-focused manga drawing methods presented in Volume 1.